Headlight-reflector



P. M. HOTCHKIN.

HEADLIGHT REFLECTOR.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 21, 1916. RENEWED FEB. 16.1917.

1 MIMQFUUDLE',

DQILL HUtUU wm Wifrws s P-. M. HOTCHKIN.

HEADLIGHT REFLECTOR.

APPLICATION HLED FEB. 21, 1916. RENEWED FEB. 16, 1917.

1 35 1 1 69 Patented Aug. 31, 1920.,

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

' P. M. HOTCHKIN.

HEADLIGHT REFLECTOR. APPLICATION r1150 FEB. 21. 1916- RENEWED FEB. 16,1917.

1 35 11 1 9 Patented Aug-1 SL 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

T UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE:

PAUL M. HO'I'CHKIN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIG-NOIt TO NATIONAL X-RAY REFLECTOR 00., OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

HEADLIGHT-REFLECTOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 31, 1920.

Application flled February 21, 1916, Serial No. 79,747. Renewed February 16, 1917. Serial No. 149,149.

To all whom it only concern.-

Be it known that I, PAUL M. Ho'rcHxiN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Chicago, county of Cook, and

State of Illinois, have invented certain new.

- directed to reflectors employed in the headlights of motor vehicles and the like, where it is desirable and expedient to concentrate the intense beam of light upon the roadway and prevent the glare from reaching the eyes of pedestrians in front of the headlight or of the drivers of vehicles approaching in the opposite direction, while at the same time affording a much desired subdued but sufiicient light to reach the roadside clearances.

It is obvious that in the ordinary type of reflector now used, viz.; of uniform crosssection both above and below the center of the lamp, practically all the light that reflects above the center of the lamp is waste light and accomplishes no useful purpose; but on the contrary is the light that is' so harmful in that it blinds any one approaching, and consequently is often directly responsible for many accidents. 7

The principal object of my invention resides in the construction of a reflector that is adapted to control the light rays emanating therefrom so that little or none of the light from the source of illumination will be reflected above the horizontal plane of the light unit, and will utilize the waste light, which is ordinarily reflected above the center of the lamp, and divert it to the beam of light thrown upon the road. This allows of either approximately twice the amount of light on the road itself, or of using a source of energy of approximately one-half that of the ordinary type of reflector. Another object of my invention is the provision of a reflector which while successfully accomplishing. the foregoing'obhicles passing each other upon Yadways. stillanother object of my inven i n is the provision of a reflector of the above type that is constructed so that it may be readily installed in a lamp casing of commercial form wlthout the necessity of reconstruction of either the casing or the reflector.

Further objects of my invention are the provision of a reflector that ,combines both neatness and attractiveness in its appearance, is comparatively inexpensive to manufacture, and has a maximum of efliciency in performing the divers functions for which it is designed. All of these objects and others I prefer to accomplish by the means and in the manner hereinafter fully described and as more particularly pointed out in the claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, wherein,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a reflector constructed in accordance with my invention and viewed from the left of the axis of the main reflecting surface.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of my improved reflector.

3 is a top plan View thereof.

F g. 4 is a vertical side elevation thereof.

Fig. 5 is a top plan of the left half of a reflector constructed with a slightly modified side wall.

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5 of another modification of the side wall of the reflector.

Referring to the drawings, it will be observed my invention comprises a shell of suitable material, preferably transparent glass that is silvered upon its exterior to provide the reflecting properties. This shell is so shaped that three concave reflecting surfaces are provided and said surfaces are arranged or disposed with relation to one another that each reflector supplements or cooperates with one or both of the other reflectors. In this connection I prefer to employa supporting plate 10, with which the reflectors are connected, but the same is not [essential to the successful operation of my invention. This supporting plate, 10, as shown in the drawings, is disposed in the horizontal plane of the light bulb and is somewhat rectangular in outline, having a substantially straight forward edge, a convex or outwardly curved rear edge and, in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4, has parallel straight side edges. The main reflecting surface of the device is located below th1s plate, 10, and

comprises a segment or sector of a concave reflector, 11, that may or may not be developed in a parabolic curve, but in this connection I prefer the former on account of its greater effectiveness. This member, 11, is the lower portion of a concave reflector, the upper horizontal edge whereof intersects the curved rear edge ofthe plate, 10, and is preferably connected thereto. and depending from, the side edges of the plate, 10, are suitable reflectors, 12, 12, having three edges, the upper whereof are connected to the adjacent side edges of the plate, 10, and the rear edges whereof are curved to conform with and fit the edges of the main reflector, 11. These side reflectors,

' taken together, are disposed so as to describe a cylinder of substantially the diameter of the Whole device, but, as shown, only a fragment of the cylinder is employed in my device, and in some instances it may be found desirableto break up the light rays from the side reflectors, 12, 12, by corrugating or stippling the surfaces of said reflector in any desired manner.

Adjacent its rear edge, the plate, 10, is provided with an opening, 13, that occupies a considerable area of the central portion thereof and disposed above this opening is a concave supplemental reflector, 14, of substantially hemispherical, semi-globular, or any other convenient shape. The axis of this supplemental reflector is disposed at substantially right-angles to the axis of the main reflector and 'is adapted toreflect the light rays from the bulb, 15, rising above the horizontal plane of the plate, 10, downwardly into the concave main reflector, 11,

from which said rays are projected out of the latter. The bulb, 15, is of any suitable type and is mounted in a socket carried in the opening, 16, in the rear of the device, and any portion of its rays reaching the side reflectors, 12, are scattered at a flaring angle to the main beam, as shown in Fig. 3' so as to illuminate the roadway clearances on either side of the vehicle, without the intense glare developed by the main reflector. From the foregoing it will also be evident that a large proportion of the-light units from the bulb are utilized and the beam of light projected from the main reflector does not rise above the horizontal plane of the lamp filament, thus avoiding a glare in the eyes of persons in front of the vehicle.

The modified structures illustrated in F i s. 5 and 6 of the drawings are substantiaIly the same as that just described, with Intersecting with the exception that in Fig. 5 the side reflectors, 17, 17, are not parallel and-do not form a fragment of a cylinder, but converge slightly toward the rear and comprise a fragment of an indefinitely elongated cone, whlle in Fig. 6, these side reflectors, 18, 18, are developed on a suitable curve.

For the purpose of adding symmetry and strength to the front of the device, I prefer to provide a flange,.19, around the forward edges of the side reflectors and to extend this flangevabove the plate, 10, all in a circle struck from the axis of the cylindrical side reflectors and at its front edge said plate, 10,

is turned upwardly to provide a vertical and described herein, and I therefore wish it understood that I do not limit myself to the particular shapes and arrangements set forth.

In considering the construction of the reflecting media the reflector consisting of the part 14, might be properly termed a primary reflector, whereas the curved portion 11, might be aptly termed a secondary reflector, since the lamp or source of light isinterposed or stationed between them, and the reflector 14: throws the light onto the reflecting surface of the portion 11 from which it is reflected to a useful area.

What I claim is 1. A' device for reflecting light, comprising two substantially concaved reflectors, one of which is in a plane above the other, the lower reflector extending under the axis of the upper reflector, and side reflectors having curved walls, the said side reflectors having their edges merging with the lower of the first'mentioned reflectors, as and for the purpose described.

2. A device for projecting light, comprising two substantially concaved reflectors, one of which is in a plane above the other, and the said lower reflector extending under the axis of the uppermost reflector, side reflectors having curved reflecting surfaces, the edges of the side reflectors merging with the lower of the first mentioned reflectors and terminating at their upper ends at the edges of the uppermost reflector, as and for the purpose described.

Signed at Chicago, county of Cook and State of Illinois, this 17th day of F ch, 1916.

' PAUL M. HOTCHKIN.

Witnesses:

' B. LEBRocm,

ESTELLA WOLFF. 

